Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association asked to remove seal
March 29, 2010March 29, 2010
After a number of
recalls and infant deaths associated with drop-side cribs, the State of Illinois is pushing crib manufacturers to make the beds safer.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says she has sent a letter to the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) requesting that they "...take immediate action to address the hazards associated with drop-side cribs." She has specifically asked JPMA Executive Director Michael Dwyer to take three immediate actions:
Remove the JPMA seal from all drop-side cribs that remain on the market.
Initiate an education and outreach campaign to inform consumers of the risks associated with drop-side cribs; and
Provide consumers who have drop-side cribs with a purchase incentive in exchange for their unsafe crib.
"The JPMA Certification Seal is meant to guarantee consumers that the product was designed, built and tested to the very highest safety standards. Allowing the JPMA Certification Seal on drop-side cribs falsely assures consumers that these dangerous products are safe." Madigan said in her letter.
Almost seven million cribs have been recalled since 2007 because of drop-side detachments. Twenty-one children have died when the drop-side of their crib detached, creating a gap that they slid into, and then suffocated.
The Attorney General made the announcement today at a press conference hosted by Kids in Danger (KIDS) in Chicago where it released its annual study of recalled children's products.